gylee Posted August 4, 2006 Share #61 Posted August 4, 2006 Advertisement (gone after registration) But my God, how boring are his interpretations of Goldberg Variations About half as boring as his "Well Tempered Clavier"... (I can see that the Gould League are going to be coming after me with a vengeance) On a more serious note, I see that Elizabeth Schwarzkopf has died. I could not count the number of times that I have listened to her Strauss' Four Last Songs - it is the perfect piece for late at night when you want to listen to something, but you just can't put your finger on what. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted August 4, 2006 Posted August 4, 2006 Hi gylee, Take a look here Musical preference. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Guest leica_mage Posted August 4, 2006 Share #62 Posted August 4, 2006 [...] Unlike Leicas, which are exquisite, I've never found any commercial speakers to my liking. Bryan Try mbl of Berlin. They are artisans and their work is extraordinary. By the way, I pine for the old site. This pale rendition of paleness just isn't doing the trick. The old site was the quintessence of effective simplicity - like the Leica... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leica_mage Posted August 4, 2006 Share #63 Posted August 4, 2006 Playing Bach emotively is like oversharpening a Leica pic IMHO. Old chum, it's the opposite - playing Bach emotively is like taking an ASPH pic and turning it into something that the Thambar would have rendered... All my best as always, Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leica_mage Posted August 4, 2006 Share #64 Posted August 4, 2006 [...] Mahler (Rattle and the BPO's 5th and 10th are in my opinion, to die for) [...] plus a little Vaughan Williams, a little Elgar and a little "miscellaneous" on the classical side I was at the inaugural concert and then bought the CD as a memento of how to turn that symphony to bath water. Don't misunderstand me, things expressed on forums such as this can come off as agressive. That is neither my mood nor my intention, but Mahler has far greater advocates. That having been said, his Vienna Beethoven cycle is riveting - even though when I heard them live doing the same thing in Berlin (before the recording) I ended up selling three Beethoven 9th tickets I'd bought to spare myself the pain and save something like 600 euros... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hm1912 Posted August 4, 2006 Share #65 Posted August 4, 2006 I listen to jazz, blues, classical, electronic, some pop and some classic rock. I'm all over the place! But what about listening to different types of music on relation to one's activity. For example, when I write I like to listen to something with a good beat and few lyrics to keep me going and not distracted. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
topoxforddoc Posted August 4, 2006 Share #66 Posted August 4, 2006 Charlie, this is interesting. ...This is new, and interesting to me, and I am curious to know more about the vinyl verse CD quality. How do they make the vinyl records? Do they start with a digital file like a DAT? And while I am at it, where do the new super audio type CDs fit in this sound quality range? Thanks! Bill Bill, I've sent you a PM as the topic is a bit tangential for the forum. Charlie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilot Posted August 4, 2006 Share #67 Posted August 4, 2006 Advertisement (gone after registration) The point about homebrew speakers is that I can do what most manufacturers can't. I have all the time in the world, I don't have to recover development costs, I don't have to build to a price, I can use whatever components I choose, regardless of cost, and I don't have to please the market and the media. So my speakers have four drivers and an elaborate crossover network with something like 60 capacitors among other things. Except for the bass resonance they pretty much look like a pure 8 ohm resistance, instead of the dog's hind leg impedance curve that you see for some exotic ware. So I don't need fancy cables and the amp can just loaf along comfortably. A manufacturer would probably have to charge $50,000 a pair for speakers of this class though they only cost me a couple of thousand bucks. Here's a good test of speakers - see how close you can get before you can hear the individual drivers. I can get within less than a foot. Speaking of Rattle and Mahler, the second symphony is one amazing recording, particularly the opening bars. Bryan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
billh Posted August 5, 2006 Share #68 Posted August 5, 2006 Beethoven ... and Jack Teagarden ... and Bob Dylan ... but mainly Beethoven ... because he proved that a tortured body and mind can still create the most wonderful music. And I'm currently listening to his Waldstein Sonata. Dunk Jack Teagarden? I like him too! How about Bobby Hackett? These are old Leica pics: http://homepage.mac.com/billh96007/2005_Calendars/PhotoAlbum125.html Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stunsworth Posted August 5, 2006 Share #69 Posted August 5, 2006 A manufacturer would probably have to charge $50,000 a pair for speakers of this class though they only cost me a couple of thousand bucks...Bryan I'm sure most manufacturers would be more than happy with that kind of mark up :-) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdb Posted August 5, 2006 Share #70 Posted August 5, 2006 Dunk, Wonderful! I am currently playing it (Waldstein) and it is a pure jewel... Albert, Nobody is insulting nobody. The length of this thread, and the enthousiasm it arouses just proves how much Music is a necessity to each of us' life, and it is a great thing to have the opportunity to show it. But every opinion deserves respect, and I did not insult Glenn Gould. Just read my post again, if you please: I said he was a fantastic virtuoso. Musicians are not always composers, as in the 19th and earlier: now they are more interpreters. Johann Sebastian Bach needs not to be reinterpreted, and reinterpretations are very often the pathway towards bad taste and non-respect of the composer's intentions. If you really want to listen to JS Bach, take the time to listen to Partita n°1 in b flat major by Dinu LIPATTI. This record has been made in the forties (he died in 1950), thanks to the genius of Mr Walter Legge who discovered his unequalled talent (by the way, Mr Legge was the husband of Elizabeth Schwarzkopf who died two days ago, and it was he who discoverd her). And just next to Lipatti, listen to Bach's 24 Preludes and fugues by Sviatoslav Richter. Maybe you'll understand that Bach needs not to be reinterpreted. Just to be respected, which is the first step towards love The same goes for Beethoven: listen to op 110 sonata played -reinterpreted- by Gould, and to the bad use he makes of the pedal: we are very far from the beautiful interpretations of Pollini, Brendel, Kempff, or some others. Still, you are right to worship somebody. We all need idols. Besides composers, mine are Dinu Lipatti above all, then Régine Crespin, and a few many many others... To come back to Leica, one question: are you, honorable forum members, able to detect if a pictures has been shot through an aspheric lens versus a non-aspheric one ? Your eyes must be better than my ears ! Cheers to everybody ! Gérard Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael-IIIf Posted August 5, 2006 Share #71 Posted August 5, 2006 listen to Bach's 24 Preludes and fugues by Sviatoslav Richter. Gérard Luckily I have recently found both books of Richter's Well Tempered Clavier on vinyl and am currently enjoying them very much. Michael Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimF Posted August 5, 2006 Share #72 Posted August 5, 2006 Mr Legge was the husband of Elizabeth Schwarzkopf who died two days ago, and it was he who discovered her Would it not be more accurate to say that Legge saved Schwarzkopf's career after the Second World War? I heard a piece on the radio yesterday in which it was stated that she was never "de-nazified", and he was described as being a "rather unpleasant man". Both may be true, but it certainly doesn't take away from their respective achievements. Legge, for any faults he may have had, was responsible for setting up many of the finest opera recordings that have been made; even many decades on some have not been matched. Geniuses are frequently not very nice people. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest menze_as Posted August 5, 2006 Share #73 Posted August 5, 2006 Bach. Gregorianik - Josquin - Dowland - Händel - Haydn - Mozart - Beethoven - Schubert - Bruckner - Schostakowitsch - Pärt Interpreters: Nikolaus Harnoncourt (conductor, cellist, Viola da Gamba player) Friedrich Gulda Valery Afanassiev Gidon Kremer Hopkinson Smith Emma Kirkby - Andreas Scholl - Marjana Lipovsek - Christoph Prégardien - Max van Egmond - Michael Schopper ABQ Concentus Musicus Wien Berliner Philharmoniker Arnold Schoenberg Chor The Hilliard Ensemble (and many others) Greetings, Astrid Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted August 5, 2006 Share #74 Posted August 5, 2006 ...are you, honorable forum members, able to detect if a pictures has been shot through an aspheric lens versus a non-aspheric one... With good lenses, aspheric images are generally sharper including bokeh. To quote old hi-fi ads you've got the feeling that a veil has been removed between you and the subject matter. With less-good lenses, there is more sharpness as well but bokeh becomes harsh with doubled lines instead of blured contours and/or highlights get sharp edges instead of soft ones. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted August 5, 2006 Share #75 Posted August 5, 2006 ...Here's a good test of speakers - see how close you can get before you can hear the individual drivers. I can get within less than a foot... Can we count in millimeters? OK second test: the sound must not seem to come from the loudspeakers; one must have the feeling that the speakers don't work even (for the best ones) when you look at them individually. Third test: in mono, all the sound must seem to come from a tiny point between the speakers. Hard tests for most 'high-end' loudspeakers and for most listening rooms as well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leica_mage Posted August 5, 2006 Share #76 Posted August 5, 2006 Would it not be more accurate to say that Legge saved Schwarzkopf's career after the Second World War? I heard a piece on the radio yesterday in which it was stated that she was never "de-nazified", and he was described as being a "rather unpleasant man". Both may be true, but it certainly doesn't take away from their respective achievements. Legge, for any faults he may have had, was responsible for setting up many of the finest opera recordings that have been made; even many decades on some have not been matched. Geniuses are frequently not very nice people. Suffice it to say that if Legge turned up on this forum there would be not a few members that would start describing him with insulting epithets such as "troll", etc. As for Schwarzkopf, she remained a Nazi sympathiser to the very end and made no secret of it. The same is true of a very famous baritone who specialised in Schubert Lieder... But of course, as mentioned, that has nothing to do with the artistry. As for Bach, he is the summum not only of Western musical culture but of Western Art as a whole. His music cannot be corrupted even if played 'emotively', as LCT implied. You can play Bach on a barrel organ or on an anvil, at any tempo and in any style you like. He is the only composer who can survive it. As for the difference between ASPH and non-ASPH lenses, they are indeed as clear as the difference between Leica and non-Leica optics. Regarding Glenn Gould, the man was a towering musician. He didn't 're-interpret' anything; he recreated it, as all music should (and was always meant to) be. But Gould was a composer also and he knew what he was doing. Richter did the same, especially in Beethoven, but not only. There it was his profound knowledge of Opera - which he served as répétiteur during his youth - that lent his registers a "voice", even when he played on derelict uprights in small Russian towns (Michelangeli would rather have been burned at the stake). For Gérard: all renderings of the musical score are 're-interpretations' in the broad sense - despite what M. Pollini (whom I respect greatly, do not get me wrong) and others may claim. The vision will always be subjective. The older Gilels was the greatest interpreter of the Beethoven Sonatas ever - and that is an impossible achievement considering the existence of Schnabel, Serkin, Richter, Nat, Michelangeli, Léfébure, and not only... Best, because if I get carried away I'll take up two pages here!... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted August 5, 2006 Share #77 Posted August 5, 2006 ...As for Bach, he is the summum not only of Western musical culture but of Western Art as a whole. His music cannot be corrupted... Even if played by Yo-Yo Ma? Makes me think of Canon pics (sorry Steve ) Plasticky music. Nothing personal mates! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leica_mage Posted August 5, 2006 Share #78 Posted August 5, 2006 Even if played by Yo-Yo Ma?Makes me think of Canon pics (sorry Steve ) Plasticky music. Nothing personal mates! OH MY GOD! I had completely forgotten... LCT, I'm afraid you've pinned me down like a butterfly in an entomologist's drawer... You are right - but it's the only instance. Even old Slava didn't manage to destroy the Suites (and that's an achievement!). That means Yo-Yo Ma should be in the Guiness Book of World Records. And I'm not apologising to anyone. Canon pictures indeed!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest menze_as Posted August 5, 2006 Share #79 Posted August 5, 2006 My mother-in-law used to say: That's the very greatness of Bach: His music can never be destroyed, even if interpreted by the worst player. It will always show its pure grandiosity. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Micheal Posted August 5, 2006 Share #80 Posted August 5, 2006 Findus, Favorite group "Cowboy Junkies", Favorite musician, Albert King. Michael Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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